Rick relishes the return to Phoenix

PSC golf from The Café Kronborg

(L - R) Rick Evans, Bob Rasmussen & Marty Allred.

Monday June 19, Green Valley - Stableford
The beautiful Rayong Green Valley layout was host for a stableford competition in two flights: A Flight 0 to 16, and B Flight 17 and above. The course was in fine condition as usual.
Marty Allred took the A Flight with 36 points, Bill Plath, just back from Mali was second with 34 points and Gene Rooney was third with 33 points on count back over Brian Wilkinson.
Bob ‘missed the bus’ Rasmussen took the B Flight with 38 points ahead of Tournament Director Dave Richardson in second with 36 points and John Swanson, just back from Modesto, in third with 33 points.
Thursday, June 22, Phoenix - Stroke
So off we went, leaving The Cafe Kronborg in overcast conditions, with wet roads. These are the sort of days we wonder if we are going into the rain or away from it. I used to like this course, then it seemed to turn user ‘unfriendly’ so I stopped booking it. This was to be a test.
The layout here is starting to mature and is not as easy as it used to be, especially on this day when it was overcast and we did get the occasional spot of rain. Generally however, the course was in good condition and we played the Mountain and Lakes, both of which were quite difficult.
With only one flight, it was pretty easy to find the winners and on the day the golfers with the lowest handicaps came to the fore.
The winner was declared to be Rick Evans, playing some fine golf with a net 69. Marty Allred came second with a net 71, Bob Rasmussen was third with a net 74 and Gene Rooney came in fourth with a net 75.
The test for the course? Well in my opinion it is still not so ‘user friendly’, although I did get some really fine fried chicken out on the course.
T.T.F.N.

First time out for The Bowling Green

The Bowling Green Golf Society

Pheonix Golf Club was chosen as the venue for the inaugural outing of The Bowling Green Golf Society.
The course was in first class condition as always, and if you were unlucky enough to land in one of the many bunkers you certainly had your work cut out. However, this presented no problem to Stan Kure who scored a very respectable 41 points in the A flight or to Tewin, who won the B flight with 39 points.
Tony and all the staff at the Bowling Green looked after everyone very well, putting on a lovely breakfast before we played and provided a fine meal after the event finished.
Fergus Brennan organised the day and will be doing this for all future fixtures: A wonderful day was had by all who took part.
Results:
A Flight 0-18:
1st Stan Kure 41 pts
2nd Mike Gahssa 37pts
3rd Steve Hamstead 35pts
B Flight 19+:
1st Tewin Lamthong 39pts
2nd Joel Flov 34pts
3rd Michelle LeFebure 33pts
Nearest Pins: Steve Hamstead x 2, Donald Hendry, Bob Rasmussen
Best 9 Holes: A Flight: Donald Hendry 20pts, B Flight: Derek Eastam 19pts
2’s Club: Donald Hendry, Joel Flov

Hancock wins high scoring joust

IPGC Pattaya Golf Society at the OK Corral

A dismally drizzly Tuesday, June 20 saw the Pattaya Golf Society undertake the short trip to the enigmatic Eastern Star. The Resort’s decision to ban buggies for the day had resulted in the withdrawal of one group of players but the rest of the field took on the rain-damaged fairways and painfully slow greens to play out their weekly medal event.
Understandably the course was empty on a day when thunder crashed all about and as a result scores were destined to be very high indeed - an average of net 82 was the order of the day.
Local member Dave Stockman returned net 80 for a share of third place with Nora Haugsjordet whilst a despairing John Cunningham fired an embarrassing 79 for second. Another local member, Arthur Hancock, took on his home course with application but even he found that a net 78 was probably not good enough. But he was wrong, it had won the day.
The rest of the field were all within ten shots of the leader and there was some consolation for Sam Fitzsimmons as his birdie two on the thirteenth matched that of Arthur, who had the bonus of another on the sixth, and they both shared the rolled over “twos” pot.
Chris Walsh had newly arrived for his annual golf holiday and found his three OB shots on the fourth contributed greatly to his net 88 and had certainly won him a spot on the Booby Bevy board. Better times lie ahead for Eastern Star.
Smith takes sting out of Khao Kheow
Khao Kheow was the Pattaya Golf Society’s choice of venue for its weekly stableford event on Thursday, June 22 and an eager group took to the links pondering what the latest Order of Merit event would hold in store.
The weather held fine, even if a little overcast, and the course was in excellent condition over the “B” and “C” nines. As the course was empty the five groups had no impediment to their round and it soon became clear that the lower handicappers would have the day, as the course was playing long off rear placed yellow tees.
Ben Findon’s score of 33 points matched that of David Thomas, soon to be crowned “Player of the Month”, and took a share of third place but the top two golfers had good reason to smile. The consistent “Wizard of Oz”, Stuart Thompson, played nine holes before losing a shot to par and finished with 37 points for a creditable second place. However, six-handicapper Paul Smith, playing for the first time with the PGS, showed everyone what he is capable of with a near faultless round of gross 73, giving him a monstrous 41 points for an emphatic victory. He was helped in part by the birdie two on B3 and he was to share the “twos” pot with Brian Bellis and Saranya Chaiyanont.
Confusion reigned at the end of the round as the only one of the group with an insect allergy was “buzzed” by a hornet on the final green and emergency treatment was necessary. For that we are very grateful to Harry and Ya Riley and their efforts ensured the presentation went on as normal. All in a day’s golf at the OK Corral.

Larry leaves the field in his wake

PSC golf from The Three Sisters Bar

Tuesday June 13, big hitting Larry Emerson got his game together and shot a brilliant 46 points. No one else was in sight as the second place finisher was Doug Powell with 37. It was a terrific day for Larry as his driver and putter stayed hot all day.
Holding the bottom spot this week was one of our seniors, Rollie Weese. He had a bad day as he stumbled in with 20 points.
On June 20 Larry Emerson again produced some of his former magic as he won the day with 38 points. Not as fine a round as the previous week but still good enough to win the day.
Coming in second place was none other than our top gun Dale Murphy. Dale has been at or near the top for a long time. This week he managed 36 points to fall short of the premier place.
Holding the bag this week was a surprise. Kenny Mau just couldn’t get on track and managed to get 20 points, which booked him a spot in the cellar. Nine points on the back nine? Kenny feels that pretty soon he will be playing with the geriatrics.

Ben -’singing in the rain’ at Sattahip

IPGC golf with The Caddy Shack

Tuesday, June 20, Phoenix - Medal
Unfortunately, torrential rain hit, causing a delay of over an hour and making the conditions almost unplayable. When we were eventually able to resume, Ben Findon came out on top with a fine net 73. Basil Foley took second spot on net 75 with Les Winch completing the podium places with a net 77.
Not surprisingly there were no “twos” recorded today and the ‘bananas’ went to George Meigh who managed to lose 8 balls in his round.
Thursday, June 22, Sattahip - Stableford
Nobody on the golf course - a potential perfect start from the 10th tee and lo and behold a 6 ball appeared from out of nowhere! At the lighthouse hole they called us ‘through’, however there were now 20 people on the green they thus decided to tee off on the 4th leaving the Caddy Shack boys no option but to miss a hole. Meanwhile, the starter had sent half our group onto the West course (we were playing the North).
Result? No competition and the “twos’ pot was declared void. The ‘bananas’ on this occasion went to the starter.

The Beautiful Game?: Eriksson must start making decisions

Riz Taylor
We’re down to just eight teams in the World Cup, and that figure will halve over the next two days after four mouthwatering ties for the football connoisseur.
Germany versus Argentina is surely the standout fixture as the two form sides of the tournament take each other on in Berlin tonight. As an England supporter it’s probably the fixture I’ll most enjoy watching this weekend, but not for the beautiful football. Instead it’s because it gives me a rare opportunity to enjoy a match, because watching England stutter through the competition should be outlawed on the grounds of human rights, because this is a form of torture.
For all the hype surrounding England’s challenge and the prospect of taking their strongest squad to a finals in some years, Sven’s men are yet to find anything approaching championship form in this World Cup. As the side laboured to victory over Ecuador last week it was apparent that there is a clear lack of understanding and fitness in the side, and that worries me ahead of tomorrow’s encounter in Gelsenkirchen.
Once again Sven Goran Eriksson pits his wits against the man who until very recently looked like being his successor, “Big Phil” Scolari. This is the man that outfoxed Eriksson during the European Championships, two years after masterminding Brazil’s 2-1 win over England during the last World Cup. Eriksson will be hoping it’s a case of third time lucky this evening, and a large smattering of luck is exactly what his side will need judging by their recent performances.
Of course you can only beat what is put in front of you, but even though England are unbeaten after four games there are still genuine worries. A lucky win over Paraguay and taking 83 minutes to break down Trinidad and Tobago will hardly worry Scolari ahead of tomorrow’s match and even Ecuador, surely the weakest team in the last 16, made England fight all the way on Monday.
Eriksson is one of football’s highest paid managers, but after five years in the hot-seat the Swede still has absolutely no idea which formation he should be playing or even which personnel should be in the team. Against Ecuador we saw Michael Carrick employed as a defensive anchorman and Owen Hargreaves, impressive in the same role against Sweden, moved to right back to cover for the injured Gary Neville. This 4-1-4-1 formation was Eriksson’s third attempt in four games at finding a solution to his biggest dilemma - where to play Frank Lampard and Steven Gerrard.
These are two midfielders that need no introduction from me, but despite their respective talents it seems the pair are unable to play in the same team. Both are fighting over the attacking midfielder role that they play for their clubs, yet both are yet to hit form and it’s here where England are suffering.
Something has to change, and in my mind the answer to Sven’s headaches are simple - drop Frank Lampard. It may seem a shock to some, but the Chelsea man has been unable to reproduce his outstanding club form during this World Cup and it’s now time the Swedish manager stood up and earnt his money.
It’s all very well tinkering with different formations, but haven’t England had five years to find a suitable system? Why experiment now, at the World Cup, the very tournament he set his sights on winning before he rides off into the sunset weighed down with cash?
And let’s look at the problems up front. Eriksson, in his infinite wisdom, decided to take only four strikers to Germany - Michael Owen, Wayne Rooney, Peter Crouch and seventeen year-old Theo Walcott ahead of Tottenham’s Jermain Defoe and Charlton’s Marcus Bent, who would have gone on their summer holidays scratching their heads in disbelief.
That gamble has failed. Owen was yet to reach full fitness after a long-standing injury, Rooney’s metatarsal situation and fitness gave no reason to bank on the talented youngster, Peter Crouch is unproven at this level, and Walcott has yet to appear in top-level football, anywhere.
A lack of form is one thing, but a complete failure to show any sign of cohesion is another and England have now reached the moment when the excuses will no longer wash with the supporters. Two years ago Scolari had the ‘cohones’ to drop Portuguese hero Luis Figo from his line-up due to poor form, and if Eriksson wants to finally beat his Brazilian nemesis he might start by putting Frank Lampard on the bench for Saturday’s game.
Pick a card
Referees are hitting the headlines during this World Cup as the record for red and yellow cards was smashed even before this weekend’s quarter finals. More than 300 yellows have been shown, surpassing the 272 shown four years ago, and the number of dismissals have also surpassed Japan and Korea.
I had to admit to having a good old laugh at the expense of pompous English referee Graham Poll during Australia’s thrilling draw with Croatia last week. The Premiership number one official had a complete howler whilst officiating the crunch match that was to decide which nation advanced to play Italy. Poll missed TWO blatant penalties and booked Croatian defender Josip Simunic THREE times before finally ordering him off.
Not a good day at the office, and even FIFA president Sepp Blatter was quick to criticise. He said: “I cannot understand how the four people in the team refereeing the match; the referee, the assistants and the fourth official could have allowed this to happen. It is like they had a blackout. Someone should have said ‘stop, stop, something is wrong here’.”
And to think that we went into the tournament wondering if the competition would be ruined by referees from Third World nations.

The Square Ring

by Howie Reed

There are sometimes things you have to do when covering the sport of boxing that are distasteful and usually unnecessary.
It’s no great secret that the safety measures in Indonesia for boxers have been and still are “non-existent”. To their credit the WBC has made some attempts to remedy the situation. Those attempt have been mainly superficial for the simple reason that throwing money at the problem doesn’t get it done. It’s time for boxing organizations everywhere to ban all boxers from taking part in fights in Indonesia. Period - end of story.
Last week the following came across the wires: “Sadly, another boxing fatality has taken place in Indonesia. A young fighter named Fadly Kasim died after being knocked out by his opponent Jibril Soamole in the last round of a six round bantamweight fight. Kasim was heavily beaten in the last round, before he collapsed and died at the nearest hospital.
According to Indopos.com, Kasim’s trainer had actually asked his fighter to retire in round three, but he refused and continued to box. Kasim becomes the 25th boxing fatality in Indonesia, and the eleventh Indonesian fighter to lose his life as a result of ring injuries since the year 2000.
He are my thoughts on the matter: First off, the trainer should be brought up on manslaughter charges along with the referee and whoever served as the ring doctor. Secondly, the promoters should be banned from ever promoting a fight again and Indonesia should be suspended from all the various ranking organizations. Next, Saturday’s fight between Chris Johns (37-0) and Rean Acosta (17-4) for the WBA featherweight tile should be cancelled and moved outside the country. And finally, I’d ban any boxer that fights in Indonesia after July 1 - for life.
That ought to get their attention. Harsh? Yes. When covering the WBC Convention in Pattaya back in 2001 I watched as 6 medical people from Indonesia begged the WBC to take action only to have their mikes turned off and their pleas ignored.
How good is Sunday’s fight in Manila between Manny Pacquiao (41-3-2) and Oscar Larios (56-4-1) going to be? Well about as good as it gets in boxing. Pacquiao, along with Arturo “Thunder” Gatti, is part of the most exciting duo in boxing. Before he got knocked sidewise by Israel Vazquez (40-3) in 3 last December, Larios was the King of the super bantam’s. Funny but Larios had given Vazquez a loss back in May of “ought 2”. Larios had defended the WBC super bantam title 10 times before the December loss.
This fight is for the “minor” WBC international super featherweight title, which has about as much worth as a promise of undying love from a “lady that walks to music”
If Pacquiao takes this fight at the Araneta Coliseum in Manila lightly he’s in for a long and maybe not successful night. One thing of note is that the fight gets a world class referee with cousin Bruce McTavish taking on the role of being the only man in the ring when the bell rings in TV blue shirt and tie.
Anyone familiar with boxing knows that some boxers are not choirboys and lately, not even choirgirls. In any sack of apples there are bound to be some bad ones. We accept that as fact. Too many don’t realize that “a bad apple” in a sack is no more important than a boxer coming afoul of the law.
Some may remember the name Dave Hilton. He won the WBC super middleweight title in December 2000 when he got a split decision win over Dingaan Thobelo. Shortly after that he went to jail for molesting his daughters. Well the bum is out of jail and wants to get back in the ring. The two major promoters in Montreal, Interbox and Group Yvon Michel have told ‘bum’ Hilton to “take a hike.” Thobelo who lost the title says: “As you remember, he won the title against me controversially. I think it would be nice to get us back into the ring for a fight.” Thobelo has lost five on the trot. To him a payday is what’s most important. They’re both bums in my book.
Some may also remember the name Clifford “The Black Rhino” Etienne. He was a heavyweight contender carrying a gaudy record against guys that couldn’t ‘fight a lick’. In point of fact Etienne was 19-0 when he ran into Fres Oquendo right up the street from the Casa’ de Reed in Las Vegas at the Texas Station. He got knock down about 50 times in 8 rounds before Referee Jay Nady mercifully stopped the action at 1:37.
That was back in 2001. Since then Etienne has not done well. His most famous loss was in 49 seconds to Mike Tyson. Last May Etienne had his last fight, a loss to WBA heavyweight champion Nikolai Valuev. Following that fight he decided to return to the life of crime that got him into boxing in the first place. Last week he was sentenced to 160 years in prison for robbery, car jacking, kidnapping and attempting to shoot two policemen. It’s fair to say his boxing career’s probably over as his parole is 80 years away.
T’was with baited breath that I awaited the press conference of Oscar De La Hoya where he was set to announce his future plans: “I can fight a few more years,” he said. Oscar then followed that with the old ‘Butt Monkey’... “But I won’t be fighting on September 16 against Floyd Mayweather jr. I’ve thought long and hard about retirement, but today is not that day. I have to do the right thing. I’m only going to retire once.”
If as a boxer he only retires once that in itself would be a story. Scheduled for the September 16 date will be the rematch between Rocky Juarez and Marco Antonio Barrera. Mayweather jr? He gets a November 4 appointment against TBA.
Jeeves: “Baited breath? What do you bait it with Master?”
Himself: “The smell of money. Now may I have my reward for another column surly on it’s way to the Sportswriters Hall of Fame?”
Jeeves: “Here it is. A 30 pack of cool liquid and a couple of fine cigars.”
Himself: “You are a treasurer Jeeves.”

Macey the master of the Par Threes

PSC golf from The Bunker Bar

Monday, June 19, Crystal Bay - Medal
The Bunker Boys played a Medal competition at the lovely Crystal Bay Golf Club for our first outing of the week.

William Macey - Five ‘Near Pins’ for the week
With a relatively small field we saw Paul Smith run out the winner in the only flight with a one under par net 71. Joint second place was shared between three players: Mashi Kaneta, Granville Swanton and William Macey.
One near pin prize went to Mashi Kaneta while William Macey showed great accuracy by winning the other three.
Wednesday, June 21,
Treasure Hill - Stableford
Treasure Hill was the venue for a Stableford competition on Wednesday and with the golfers suffering from World Cup fatigue we had a small turnout with once again only one flight.
On this always challenging course we had a close run match between Gavin Perfect and Dave Lightfoot and nothing could split them at the end, both finishing with 30 points to share first prize. Third place was also shared between Tony Geeland and William Macey, who both scored 27 points.
On the difficult par three’s only one player could hit any of the greens - that man William Macey hitting two of them to take the pot!!!
Friday, June 23, Eastern Star - Medal
Friday saw us make the short journey to the Eastern Star Country Club for the second Medal competition of the week.
This tricky course was made even more difficult today because the fairways weren’t in brilliant condition and the greens were even worse, and the scorecards reflected this when the golfers returned to The Bunker for a bite to eat and a little refreshment.
With the cut at 16 and under Paul Smith was back to his best, returning to form with a fine level par net 72. Second place went to John King with a net 76 closely followed by Roger Privett with net 77.
The higher handicappers struggled today: Tony Geeland winning with net 77, Granville Swanton came second with net 83 and Graham Willoughby came a distant third shooting net 95
Only three greens were hit so one near pin prize went to PJ Redmond and the other two were won by Geordie Hudson.

A tough test at Laem Chabang

PSC golf from Tropical Bert’s

Tuesday, June 20, Laem Chabang - Stableford
This was to be a treat of a day for the golfers from Tropical Bert’s as we took advantage of the ‘Sports Day’ to have an outing at one of the best courses in the area.

Winners Stu (L) & Joel (R) with an England supporter.

The trouble with booking this course is that you actually have to take the number of golfers you book for, and here in Pattaya this can be a bit of a problem. Mind, on this day all the golfers did, nearly turn up and we took exactly the correct number.
The test for the day’s competition was to be the A & B nines, with that difficult first drive on A1. Needless to say we nearly all finished in the woods off the tee. The course itself was in its normal great condition.
So after a superb day, and a break in the fine restaurant, it was into cars and back to Bert’s. Once back on home soil, and after partaking of Bert and Pu’s fine food, the results were given. Stu Thompson was deemed the winner of the A Division with Steve Hamsted in second. Joel Flor took top spot in the B Div with Roy Pimblett in second.
T.T.F.N.
Near Pins: David Thomas, Brian Noguer (2), Stu Thompson, Rich Murphy, Carl Lovatt, Joel Flor (2)
Long Putt: Vincent Smyth, Mike Gaussa, Dick Warberg, Carl Lovatt

Ken and Keith kill Burapha

Peacock Place Golf Society

Monday, June 19, Burapha - Stableford
Seventeen golfer’s ventured to Burapha Golf Club for a stableford competition, the rain stayed away after threatening for a while and the day was great for all, well almost all.
The worst score of the day 24 point’s, which I might add get’s a free beer, came from the winner of our last competition - so it was a case of ‘from chocolates to boiled lollies’ in a hurry for Paul. But as Paul was on a health kick at the time he graciously donated his prize to Captain Bob, which was accepted with pleasure, and I might add he was also a very close second to Paul anyway.
The winning scores in the 2 divisions were superb: A Division was won by Ken McCarthy with a mighty 41 point’s with second place going to the wily old fox, Brian Jacks with 36 point’s despite him having trouble seeing the ball with his dodgy eyes, (please excuse the ‘old’ Brian.)
B Division was even better with Keith Avery taking the money with 44 points. Now that is an achievement in anyone’s round of golf - well done Keith. Second in the division was Dave Maynard, once again with 36 points - so as you readers will note, we were hung out to dry by the best in the field on the day.
There were 3 “twos” recorded; once again Brian starred as he does with the par 3s with Rich Murphy and Graham Hislett (I hope I spelt that right Graham as I can’t read your writing) taking some of the money from Mr Jacks.
Thursday, June 22, Century Chonburi - Stableford
Thursday saw 23 golfers leave the Peacock Place after a hearty breakfast and head to Century Chonburi for a singles stableford event. The course was in magnificent condition but the greens were as slippery as I have ever seen anywhere, the writer even managed a 4 putt.
The winners on the day apart from the course were in the A Division, a tie for 1st with Brian Jacks and Jack Spencer on 32 point’s each. B Division was won by Jeff McLaury with a fine 35 points whilst Nile Sheehan and John Khan tied for second place with 33 point’s each.
The ‘Ladies’ event was won by Wendy Khan: I wont go so far as to reveal the number of points recorded for fear of retribution but suffice to say the lady in question also got the free beer.
There were no “twos” so we have a roll over with a starting pot of 1,150 baht.
Our next outing is on Monday July 3 and all golfers are welcome. Call into the Peacock opposite Lake Maprachan on Siam Country Road or call Bob on 07 941 2474 for bookings.

Grape Vine moves into first place

Pattaya Sports Club Friday Bowling League

200 Bowlers - La, Ooy, Somrak, Kran, Mio, Bill, Peter & Jim

Grape Vine won all four points from Jack & Tar and moved into first place. House of the Golden Coins won three points from Mai’s Thai Restaurant but dropped from first place to second based on total pins knocked down during the league. Montana moved into third place after taking all four points from Café Ole. Café Kronborg dropped to fourth place after winning three points from VFW Post 9876. Domicil got three points from France and Three Sisters won three from Shenanigans. Brother D shut out Friends winning all four points in that match. Mio, House of the Golden Coin, bowled the best series of the league knocking down 638 pins with games of 233, 206 and 199.

League Table  (week 22) Team Points Standings Grape Vine 4 - 0 53 -35 House of the Golden Coin 3 -1 53 - 35 Montana 4 - 0 51.5 - 36.5 Café Kronborg 3 - 1 51 - 37 France 1 - 3 46 - 42 Domicil 3 - 1 46 - 42 Friends 0 - 4 45 - 43 Three Sisters 3 - 1 44 - 44 Shenanigans 1 - 3 43.5 - 44.5 Jack & Tar 0 - 4 39.5 - 48.5 Mai’s Thai Restaurant 1 - 3 39.5 - 48.5 Brother D. 4 - 0 38.5 - 49.5 VFW Post 9876 1 - 3 34 - 54 Café Ole 0 - 4 31.5 - 56.5